by Rachel Clark
It was his job to bring them together. To make them a family, but for their pod it was always consensual, planned out, and carefully decided.
“Coffee?” Noco asked from across the room. It was obvious he was trying to keep things calm and unemotional. Considering that Joal and Varn had yet to react to Chloe’s unplanned inclusion in their lives, it was probably a good thing.
Rick gave his podmate a half smile and took a seat at Kyle and Chloe’s kitchen bench. He accepted the cup of coffee Noco gave him—a strangely addictive brew that he’d grown to enjoy on this planet—and then waited for one of his husbands to say something. A part of him wanted to rebel against the ache in his chest. He knew in all four of his hearts that Chloe belonged with them. She’d always been that missing piece.
But he still shouldn’t have done what he’d done.
“What were you thinking?” Varn asked. His voice was quiet, his tone calm. He was the youngest of their pod, and also the last to join them on Jernodria so he didn’t have the years together that he and Joal and even Noco had shared. He didn’t have the experience of seeing Rick fuck up.
“I’m sorry, baby,” Rick said, reaching over to draw his husband closer. “I wasn’t thinking. It just felt so natural to share that with her. I should have done it differently, but I promise you I don’t regret claiming her. You shouldn’t either.”
Varn wrapped his arms around Rick’s waist, pressing the side of his face against his chest as he held on tight. Rick made eye contact with Noco, but it was Joal’s reaction that surprised him.
“You had no right to take the decision away from us,” he said irritably.
Rick swallowed but gave his podmate a hard look. Technically, by Jernodrian traditions he had every right to make the choices on behalf of their group. For countless generations podmates were selected by the dria-coldar of each pod. As dria-coldar of their pod it was Rick’s right and his responsibility to make wise choices to protect his family.
But in past generations dal-sheras had still been plentiful and family pods had been easily created.
Not anymore.
That was why Rick had included his podmates’ opinions in the choices he made, but ultimately the burden of responsibility was his alone to carry.
Rick reached for Joal, using his telekinesis to drag him into his embrace. Joal halfheartedly fought his hold but quieted when Varn wrapped his arms around him also.
“If Rick had called you on the phone and asked if it was okay to claim Chloe, your answer would have been the same as mine,” Noco said, his voice and words soothing the worry in Rick’s hearts. “We’ve all grown fond of her in the short time we’ve known her.” Noco glanced at Varn, perhaps realizing that their podmate hadn’t actually met Chloe yet, but he didn’t acknowledge that small detail. “Rick has spent more time with her than any of us. It’s understandable that he would want to claim her the moment he got her into our bed.”
Rick gave Noco a grateful look, but Noco’s eyes were on the man who trembled in Rick’s embrace.
“I’m sorry,” Joal finally said, his voice raw as he tried to explain his reaction. “I was just really looking forward to going home. It’s taken nearly a full Earth year to convince Kyle to come home with us.” He reached over, urging Noco into their embrace as well. “We’d already given up on the idea of finding another human to join our pod, but now it could be years before Chloe is ready to leave her home planet.”
“I hope not,” Rick said, trying to soothe Joal’s fears even as he acknowledged his own. Had he claimed Chloe in the ill-thought-out hopes of shortening the length of time they would need to stay on this planet? Had he unconsciously tried to force the issue? What if Chloe refused to join them? As a claimed human other Jernodrians would recognize and avoid Chloe now. But it also had the side effect of making her no longer attractive to the males of her own species.
Even Jernodrian medical science wasn’t certain how it was all going to work, but the DNA changes Kyle and Chloe were going through would interfere with the pheromones humans used, apparently without realizing, to choose their mate. If Chloe decided to not come home with them she might very literally be alone for the rest of her life. There was also the issue of not knowing what would happen long term. The human immune system was quite strong. If Chloe went a long time without being claimed again she was even likely to suffer severe medical issues as her human body rejected the DNA changes. The fact that she would likely live several human lifetimes, no longer human but not quite part Jernodrian either, would not only complicate everything for her, but also prolong the agony of truly being alone.
His arms tightened around his husbands almost of their own accord as fear trickled into his mind. If Chloe chose to stay on Earth, Rick was certain Kyle would stay with her. He knew without a doubt that if that happened he wouldn’t leave either. He’d claimed them and it was his responsibility to keep them safe, even if they didn’t want him to be around. To twist a human phrase, home was where his hearts were, so Rick would stay close, but if Joal, Noco, and Varn wanted to return to their planet of origin he’d feel torn in two.
Noco shook his head, apparently watching the emotions play across Rick’s face and interpreting them correctly. “We’re a family and families stick together. We’ll find a way for it all to work.”
Rick nodded, grateful for his husband’s ability to cut through the emotion and see things clearly.
“Absolutely,” he promised his podmates as he held the three of them close.
Chapter Three
Kyle watched as Chloe fussed with her hair and chose outfits like she was going on a first date. He supposed in a way it kind of was, except that she was technically already married to these men.
“Breathe, Chloe,” he said as she discarded yet another outfit. It was barely seven in the morning, so the cocktail dress she picked up next was even less appropriate. “Sweetie, I know this is all happening really fast, but I promise you what you wear isn’t important. In fact,”—he grinned and winked, thankfully getting her to laugh softly—“if I know our husbands as well as I think I do, then I’m sure they’d prefer us both naked.”
She looked stunned by that thought. “Is that why you’re only wearing a wet towel?” It was an incredible turn-on to know that all four of their men were waiting in the kitchen for them. Kyle had been with all of their husbands both individually and as a group before. But now he couldn’t wait to have Chloe with them as well. It had been so difficult keeping this part of his life the past year from his best friend. He grinned as his cock grew hard, the outline very clearly defined by the soft material.
“How does it work?” Chloe asked, plopping her bottom onto the bed as she waited for an answer.
“Well,” he said, grinning wider as he gripped his cock, “when I’m turned o—”
She cut him off with a pillow to the face. He laughed, glad to see her smiling as well.
“That’s not the ‘it’ I was referring to, smarty pants.”
“Oh,” he said in an exaggerated voice, “you want to know how it works having four husbands. Well, technically five for you since you and I are now podmates with each other as well.”
She rolled her eyes, apparently not interested by that tidbit of information at the moment, and made a rolling motion with her hand. He took her cue and got quickly to the point.
“Jernodrians—that’s their species by the way—don’t really have male-female reproduction. To reproduce they need to form family groups. The dria-coldar…” He hesitated and glanced Chloe’s way, trying to figure out how much information to dump on her all at once. It was possible that he didn’t fully understand it himself, so he settled for the details he did know for sure. “Rick is the dria-coldar of our family pod. Loosely translated it means something like leader and protector. He claims each member of the family, slowly bringing everyone together to make a family pod. Joal is…I don’t remember the Jernodrian word but it translates to ‘preparer.’ I’m not even sure how it happens, but without him
the family can’t become ready to produce offspring. Noco and Varn together impregnate the dal-sheras and the dal-sheras carry the babies to term.”
“So I’m a dal-shera?” she asked thoughtfully.
“Yup,” he said, unable to hide his grin as he added, “Me, too.”
She blinked, perhaps rejecting the words she’d thought she’d imagined. “You…um…you can get pregnant to them?” She gave him a look that suggested he was totally crazy. “And you’re okay with this?”
“Of course. What man would refuse to carry his family’s offspring if it was required?”
She raised that eyebrow again. “All of them?” she offered with a grin.
He laughed, glad to see that her personality wasn’t subdued even after the revelations of the past few hours. “I suppose that might be true for most, but for me it’s something I’m looking forward to.”
Chloe nodded and stood up, apparently having come to a decision. “When did Rick claim you?” she asked as she reached for her robe and tied the sash around her waist. It looked like she was warming to the idea of being naked with all five of her husbands.
“Just over two weeks ago.”
“Oh,” she said, obviously concerned over what the timing might mean. They’d “dated” for nearly a whole year before Kyle had agreed to join their family. But he wasn’t worried. He’d seen enough of Jernodrian marital interaction to know that each member had their place.
“Come on,” he said, reaching for Chloe’s hand and leading her to the door before she could change her mind, “let’s go have breakfast with the men of our dreams.”
* * * *
Varn finally released the near-frantic grip on his husbands as Chloe and Kyle came into the room. He’d only joined this family a short time before they’d left their home planet in search of dal-sheras, so most of his relationship with Rick, Joal, and Noco had been on Earth. He’d worked hard to learn the local customs while still trying to figure out where he fit in with this family, but this morning’s happenings had left him off balance and floundering. It hadn’t helped that he’d been deliberately baiting Joal ever since in the hopes of getting a reaction, of drawing attention to himself. Of course, that just left him feeling childish and stupid, but for the life of him he couldn’t seem to stop it.
He’d almost cried like a baby when Rick had pulled him into his arms and held him close. Varn was self-aware enough to know that most of his emotions stemmed from a lack of faith in his own self-worth. He even understood why he felt that way. What he didn’t know was how to control the emotions instead of letting them control him.
The arm still wrapped around his waist pulled slightly tighter when Chloe and Kyle came into the kitchen, but it was Joal who leaned over to kiss him reassuringly. He didn’t say anything, but at least he didn’t look as upset as he had a few moments ago.
Kyle grabbed a cup, filled it with coffee, added sugar and a dash of milk, and then handed it to Chloe. The human woman blushed shyly as she took the beverage. After a few moments of awkward silence, Kyle finally rolled his eyes and laughed softly.
“Enough already. Chloe isn’t going to run screaming, so you can all stop tippy-toeing around her.”
Varn wasn’t quite convinced of that. The poor woman looked like she’d woken in the middle of a nightmare and wasn’t sure how to react. Unfortunately he knew that feeling quite well. In some ways it made her a kindred spirit—at least that’s what popular human entertainment suggested.
Slowly he moved away from Rick, Joel, and Noco and moved toward Chloe where she stood just inside the doorway. He gave her what he hoped was a friendly smile and held a hand out for her to shake in the same way he’d seen other humans do on television.
“I’m Varn,” he said, faking a confidence he didn’t really feel. “Welcome to the family.”
“Th–Thank you,” she said as she took his hand. Her skin was warm and smooth, quite different from Kyle’s. Curious, Varn turned her hand over and ran his fingers over the smooth pads of each fingertip and then grazed his own rough fingers over her palm.
“You and Kyle are so different,” he said without thinking, his fingers skimming over her wrist and moving up her arm to her elbow before he stopped to wonder if Chloe might not want him touching her this way.
“Is that a good thing?” she asked softly, her voice slightly breathless.
Varn smiled. “That’s a very good thing.”
Kyle laughed softly but didn’t seem offended by the comparison. Varn hadn’t meant it as an insult, of course, yet it was also wonderful to realize that he knew Kyle well enough to know his moods. That did a lot to boost his confidence.
He couldn’t stop himself from lifting Chloe’s fingers to his mouth and pressing a small kiss to each fingertip. He was a little surprised by how much he wanted to run his tongue over the smooth flesh, but he managed to halt the wayward thought before it manifested itself in a physical touch.
“Do you glow in the dark, too?” Chloe asked curiously, seeming to have forgotten that the rest of their family pod was watching them interact.
“Not quite,” he said with a grin. He hadn’t really given much thought to how strange their culture must seem to outsiders. By the time he, Joal, and Noco had met Kyle, Rick had explained almost everything to him. It was a little bit exciting to be able to teach Chloe about life on Jernodria and the way a family pod functioned. All of his podmates were older than him, so as silly as it probably sounded—even to himself if he was truly honest—it was nice to know something that someone else didn’t. “Would it be okay if I embraced you?”
Chloe gave him a lovely smile and stepped into his arms. His cock stirred just from the press of her soft curves against his harder body, but it was the impregnation barb on his dick that truly ached with need. He’d only felt that sensation one other time in his life and that had been the night Rick had claimed Kyle two weeks ago.
Varn moaned softly as Noco stepped up behind him and pressed his hard cock against the crease of his ass and then wrapped his arms carefully around them both. “This is Noco,” Varn said as he relaxed back into his husband’s hold. Thankfully, Chloe didn’t seem afraid or upset. He grinned when she put down her coffee and snuggled deeper into their embrace.
“Are you okay with Rick claiming me?” she asked them both softly.
“Of course,” Noco said, resting his chin on Varn’s shoulder as he studied the woman in their arms. “We’ve wanted you in our family ever since we met Kyle, but we didn’t think you’d be very happy giving up on your ‘life plan,’ as you once put it.”
She sighed then and for a brief moment Varn feared she was about to pull away. “It would seem that my ‘life plan’ has changed rather unexpectedly.” His heart nearly stopped beating at that comment, but the soft smile she gave Rick as she glanced his way gave Varn hope. “But I would definitely like to get to know you all better.” Noco’s cock grew harder where it pressed against Varn’s ass, but Chloe must have picked up on his reaction because she laughed and wagged a finger at them both. “Not exactly what I had in mind for breakfast. Food first.”
* * * *
Thankfully both men laughed at her admonishment. It wasn’t that she didn’t want them—hell, she was so horny she could barely believe that she hadn’t jumped Rick and Kyle before now—but it was the addition of three other men that made her want to take a step back. Just a little one. Last night she’d feared she’d never forget sex with Rick and Kyle. How was it that in the bright light of morning she was being offered something even better?
“What would you like for breakfast, sugar?” Rick asked as she stepped out of Varn and Noco’s combined embrace. She smiled when she saw Noco press a kiss to Varn’s neck. She was still trying to process the whole alien concept of it taking five or six people to make babies, so the simple fact that the men already seemed to love each other was quite comforting. “Chloe?”
“Oh, sorry,” she said with an embarrassed laugh. “I’m still processing.”<
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“Breakfast?” he asked softly, reminding her of his earlier question.
“Oh, um, eggs maybe. Do you…ah…eat…um…” Well, that was proof positive that arousal was messing with her head. Could she sound any more stupid? “I mean, do you eat the same foods as humans?”
“Mostly,” Rick answered, “although we do have a few quirks you might enjoy.”
“Enjoy, how?” she asked maybe just a tad suspiciously. Rick had sounded an awful lot like Kyle when her best friend was teasing her. Several years ago he’d almost convinced her that spider monkeys were jumping arachnids before she’d grown suspicious and looked it up on the Internet.
“Kyle and I are going to order takeout at the restaurant down the road. Will you be okay to stay here with Joal, Noco, and Varn for a few minutes?”
“Of course,” she said, unwilling to offend her new husbands even if she would have preferred to go with the two men she did know at this stage.
“We’ll be back soon,” Kyle said, kissing her cheek the way he’d been doing for years before he and Rick headed into the bedroom to get dressed. A minute later Kyle reached for his keys and left with Rick right behind him.
As the door closed after them, she glanced over at Joal and wondered what he was thinking. When she’d met him earlier, she’d been distracted by both her own nudity and by the obvious affection he had for Kyle, so even though they’d already met she felt rather awkward around him.
Noco seemed to notice and quickly suggested that they get comfortable in the living area. She smiled when Joal sat down and pulled Varn onto his lap.
“You’ve probably got a million questions,” Noco said as he sat down on the sofa beside her. He was careful to give her space so she didn’t feel crowded, and she was quite grateful for it. Perversely, she was also a little envious that Varn got a cuddle and she didn’t.
She couldn’t help the soft giggle that escaped at that kooky thought.
